Hailey Van Lith spent just one season at LSU, like she promised to Kim Mulkey. The former Louisville star entered the portal as a graduate transfer shortly after getting beat by Caitlin Clark in the Elite Eight and will play her fifth and final year of eligibility at her third program.
Van Lith is already back in the gym at a very surprising location!
Her personal trainer, NBA skills coach Jordan Lawley, posted a video on Wednesday evening. His client, Van Lith, was working on her post moves inside of her soon-to-be-former team’s gym in Baton Rouge.
This is not that weird. It likely happens more often than we know.
Van Lith is probably finishing up her last semester of college before graduation next month. She’s probably still enrolled in classes on campus or online. She’s clearly still living in Baton Rouge.
However, players who enter the transfer portal usually hold their workouts at an off-site gym. I cannot say that I have ever seen an athlete that is actively seeking a new opportunity at a new program work out in his/her old program’s gym. There is something strange about the optics. Just a little bit.
Credit to Mulkey and LSU for allowing Hailey Van Lith to get her work in on their floor! It is a testament to how the former feels about the latter.
As for what is next, Van Lith was considering a move to Mississippi State for next season. Van Lith was on campus in Starkville last weekend. Her former coach at Louisville is now the head coach of the Bulldogs. The math was adding up.
However, the situation remained very fluid and she quietly took a visit to Fort Worth. TCU ultimately received her commitment on Thursday!
Perhaps LSU was aware of the decision to play for a program that is not a direct competitor within the SEC and allowed her to keep using its gym for that reason. Either way, good on the Tigers and Van Lith for remaining amicable!